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Academic Support

At Saints Catholic College we are aware that some first time university students find the transition to university study quite confusing and challenging. Student learning at high school is quite structured whereas in many university courses there is less emphasis on this.

At university, students are required to be more self-reliant and the sheer volume of information can be overwhelming to a first year university student. For this reason Saints Catholic College has implemented an Academic Mentoring programme for first year residents.

Senior residents in the various courses are employed by the College to offer assistance to small groups of first year students in their discipline. As an Academic Mentor, their role is to guide their students in formulating a study plan, to advise them on important areas to study and to keep in touch with them as individuals to ensure they are staying focused. Mentors will answer questions posed by the group, prepare areas for discussion and discuss how to tackle tests and assignments.

Attendance at the weekly meetings is compulsory for the first term and flexible for the remainder of the first semester. This gives students an opportunity to make friendships with other residents enrolled in the same course and to give them a solid grounding in their course requirements, under the helpful eye of a senior student. This can lead them to forming study groups with their peers or networking with senior residents in their course.

As a parent you can encourage your young adult to participate in this free service because indications are that since the programme's implementation at the College there have been fewer first year students failing one or more first semester subjects. Academic excellence is encouraged at the College and the academic programme for first year students helps them to establish valuable study habits and academic goals.